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Aaru
Aaru (Akshamurran Aaru, né Nirkaa, 11 August 396) is a member of the Qanagkaa, one of the many clans of the semi-nomadic Aran people who inhabit the plains around the River Yuu. He is a warrior-priest in training, formerly stationed at the city of Bataajhang until he was captured in a Vahay pirate raid. After his capture, Aaru was enslaved and taken to Cōrienor to be sold as a mine worker. He is one of the two POV characters in the story. He first appears in Chapter I, when he is bought at Dārdio's Palace by Tistan Drēsacēri as a companion. Personality and appearance Like most Aranvalar, Aaru is short in height. Tistan describes him as having bronze-like skin, and dark hair cut short to the scalp. His eyes are dark brown and he sports thick, shapeless eyebrows. Most notably, Aaru has two red, circular marks, one on each cheek. Aaru is stubborn, proud and hot-headed. He values his roots above all, and he is proud of his origins and identity. He views the Western folk with disdain, as he believes slavery to be heinous. Aaru wishes to be accepted by his parents, who want him to become a warrior-priest, and he admires his older sister, while being envious of her for having attained their parents' acceptance a long time ago. However, he doesn't really want to be a warrior, instead preferring to spend his time exploring the vast steppes of his homeland. He often visits the southern ports of the Smoking Sea, where he meets people from all over the world, and likes to spend time in the markets, to hear the different tongues and see wonders from far-away lands. Early life Aaru was born Nirkaa, on 11 August 396, on a chilly summer night somewhere in the middle of the Plain of Karanagku, one of the many plains in the steppes around the River Yuu. He was given the name Nirkaa, meaning "of the winter", by his mother, because of the especially cold conditions of the summer in which he was born. His mother, Sadru, would die shortly after his birth. His father, Khagaru, was the chief of the Qanagkaa, a warring clan of the plainspeople. As a child, Agkaa was frail and sickly, and his father largely ignored him as he preferred to train his firstborn child and only daughter, Sanaa, to become chief when he was gone. Nirkaa was largely raised by Sanaa, with whom he shared a close bond. When he turned eleven, he was marked in the same marks as his father and his sister, signalling his status as the chief's son and the member of a main branch of the clan. As all members of the Qanagkaa, Nirkaa was given a choice when he turned sixteen: he would either become a warrior-priest, a hunter, or a herder. Though as the chief's son he would've largely been expected to become a warrior-priest, Nirkaa's father disapproved of this choice and refused to train him as he had trained Sanaa. However, Nirkaa yearned for his father's approval, and so he decided to become a warrior-priest stationed in the city of Bataajhang, a rare permanent settlement of plainspeople where an order of warrior-priests named sentries protects Qarajhangaak, a place of meeting where the different plains clans meet once every two years. Upon joining the order of Qarajhangaak, Nirkaa renounced his given name and instead became Aaru, for Aarasu, the guardian of trees. In the order, he befriended another trainee named Bashu, with whom he developed another close bond. During the biannual clan meetings, Aaru would get to see his sister. He would also get to travel, visiting the southern ports where he met people from all over the world. Recent events Category:Characters Category:Aran people Category:Inhabitants of Corienor Category:Slaves